Lucid dreaming in children: The UK library study
Michael Schredl, Josie Henley, Mark Blagrove
ORCA Online Research @Cardiff 2012 DOI: 10.11588/ijodr.2012.1.9274 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 3,579 |
| Population | Children aged 6 to 18 in the UK who completed a questionnaire distributed in UK libraries |
| Topics | Dreaming Lucid dreaming |
| Citations | 15 |
| Key findings | Among 3,579 children aged 6 to 18, 43.5% reported at least one lucid dream. The authors report that the incidence of lucid dreams was most strongly associated with a preference for reading fantasy or science fiction, as they had hypothesized. |
Abstract
The term lucid dream designates a dream in which the dreamer, while dreaming, is aware he or she is dreaming. Whereas lucid dreaming has been studied in adults, large-scaled surveys in children are scarce. The sample here included 3579 children for the ages from 6 to 18 who completed a brief questionnaire distributed in UK libraries. 43.5% reported having had at least one lucid dream. As hypothesized, incidence of lucid dreams was most strongly associated with the preference for reading fantasy/science-fiction. Whether lucid dreaming might be beneficial for children in skills training or coping with nightmares are interesting topics for future research.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on lucid dreaming, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Phenomenology of Lucid Dreaming: An Online Survey Respondents to an online survey about lucid dreams | 2014 | Online survey | n = 684 |
| Frequency of Lucid Dreaming in a Representative German Sample Representative sample of German adults | 2011 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 919 |
| Lucid dreaming: an age‐dependent brain dissociation Students aged 6-19 years | 2012 | Survey | |
| Terror and bliss? Commonalities and distinctions between sleep paralysis, lucid dreaming, and their associations with waking life experiences Adults aged 18–82 years | 2016 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 1,928 |
| Increased Lucid Dreaming Frequency in Narcolepsy Patients diagnosed with narcolepsy and healthy control subjects | 2015 | Cross-sectional study | n = 979 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 11
- The Phenomenology of Lucid Dreaming: An Online Survey The American Journal of Psychology April 21, 2014
- Lucid dreaming incidence: A quality effects meta-analysis of 50 years of research Consciousness and Cognition June 20, 2016
- Cognitions in Sleep: Lucid Dreaming as an Intervention for Nightmares in Patients With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Frontiers in Psychology 2020
- Lucid dream induction using three different cognitive methods University Library Heidelberg April 25, 2017
- Dream habits in a large cohort of preteens and their relation to sleep and nocturnal awakenings. Journal of Sleep Research April 1, 2025
and 6 more in the library
Cites 8
- Lucid Dreaming Treatment for Nightmares: A Pilot Study Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics 2006
- Frequency of Lucid Dreaming in a Representative German Sample Perceptual and Motor Skills February 1, 2011
- Practicing a Motor Task in a Lucid Dream Enhances Subsequent Performance: A Pilot Study The Sport Psychologist June 1, 2010
- Techniques for Inducing and Manipulating Lucid Dreams Perceptual and Motor Skills August 1, 1983
- Do REM (lucid) dreamed and executed actions share the same neural substrate? heiDOK (Heidelberg University) 2008
and 3 more in the library